How to deal with discrimination in the Olympic and Paralympic games

Dr Dan Kilvington, Course Director of Media and Cultural Studies in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, has worked with the University of Sunderland and the Université de Franche-Comté examining past discrimination including gender, race and disability during the Olympic and Paralympic games.

Now, Dan has showcased this research in a special edition of the Sport and Society Journal in which he brings together contributions from several international experts that critically examine the Olympic and Paralympic Games across various contexts. The articles explore different types of discrimination within sports media, digital spaces and stadiums, with each article offering recommendations for change and future research.

The findings show that sports governing bodies need to develop training programmes based on authoritative wellbeing and mental health resources, to help athletes better cope with any online abuse. They also show that sports journalists need to be trained to identify and challenge the use of detrimental stereotypes and that a more diverse sports media would produce less stereotypically sexist content. It also looks at how economic injustice needs to be tackled as part of the solution, such as relating to salaries, access to training and employment.

Dan highlights the importance of understanding and tackling discrimination at the Games: "The last Olympic Games in Tokyo saw over 3 billion people tune in. It is the biggest sporting event on the planet. Yet, being the cultural melting pot that it is, we sometimes see evidence of discrimination and prejudice among the athletes and fans, while certain policies and practices are highlighted as exclusionary.

"The special issue therefore aimed to understand and tackle some key issues around the sport media, social media, and stadium accessibility. It is important that the sport media cover the Games and the athletes appropriately and respectfully, avoiding sexist, racist or ableist tropes. It is important that we recognise that some athletes may encounter online hate or abuse, and that protection and support mechanisms are in place. It is important that we scrutinize accessibility in stadiums to ensure that all spectators feel welcome and included.

"Each chapter in the special issue puts forward recommendations for positive change, something that we, as editors, strongly encouraged. We hope that the special issue will be of interest and use to those working at the Games, researching them, or simply following the spectacle."